你肯定遇到过这样的情况：你把一个黏糊糊、有弹性的东西扔到墙上，它就会慢慢地滑到地上。人们普遍误认为壁虎的脚趾也有类似的粘性。
但是，如果壁虎的脚趾也是靠这种粘附力来运作，那么壁虎就很难行走，甚至无法奔跑；捕食者会非常享受这种缺乏进化的感觉。如果我们仔细观察壁虎的脚，脚趾实际上会感觉柔软光滑。只有在微纤维（称为刚毛）参与时，脚趾才会平行于表面滑动，从而 "粘 "在表面上。
Indium Corporation 的Heat-Spring®源自大自然：铟的延展性将表面电阻降至最低并增加了热流。热弹簧图案中的峰值就像壁虎脚趾上的刚毛一样，使热弹簧能够附着在表面上--这种附着力不是弹性弹簧，而是使材料在循环过程中保持接触。
刚毛由蛋白质 beta 角蛋白构成。在纳米层面上，刚毛的分子间作用力可产生 1 到 1000 纳牛顿的粘附力；这种粘附力很强，壁虎可以每秒约三英尺的速度垂直奔跑，但与 Heat-Spring 35 psi 到 100 多 psi 的压力范围相比，就显得微不足道了。
Indium Corporation scientists were far ahead of the evolutionary curve: when Heat-Spring was designed by Bob Jarrett and Jordan Ross years ago, it was to satisfy a customer-driven need to develop a high-performance thermal interface material (TIM). Conventional polymer TIMs at the time had inherent issues due to the low conductivity of the polymers. In 不到一年因此，"热泉 "诞生了。相反，研究人员发现，壁虎脚趾的粘性 历时数百万年 发展、 被困在白垩纪琥珀中的壁虎证明了这一点.
The indium Heat-Spring underwent many iterations throughout its early design stages – or perhaps we should we call it “evolution” – as our inventors tried to understand how they could reduce contact resistance by changing the surface form of the indium. Keep in mind that adding a pattern also reduced contact area. This seemed counter-intuitive to thermal transfer principals. However, because thermal resistance consists of three basic principles – bulk conductivity, contact resistance, and bond line thickness – one part of the equation could affect total resistance more than another. Being that indium is soft and has a high conductivity, the inventors could play with different surfaces.
这种铟薄膜如何解决传统聚合物 TIM 的缺点（低导电性以及聚合物和导电填料之间的热不匹配）？Jarrett 认为："铟......具有高导电性，与界面表面高度吻合。由于铟是金属，它通过电子来传导热量（和电能），因此热失配不是问题。聚合物、半导体和聚合物 TIM 的陶瓷填料依靠晶格振动来传导热量。如果振动频率不匹配，热传递就会在 TIM 的每个界面中断。使用导电金属（如铟）则可完全避免这一问题。
In today’s world, the Internet is becoming more intertwined with the things we use the most: smart TVs, watches, refrigerators, thermostats, etc. These devices are connected to large data centers, which consume a tremendous amount of energy. To operate faster, more energy-efficiently, and more sustainably, immersion cooling is a key technique used for thermal management in these computing apparatuses. The components are “immersed″ in a thermally conductive but dielectric liquid or coolant, and the heat is dissipated by circulating the coolant. Heat-Spring is perfectly suited for this application because of its compressibility and high-profile pattern.
In another nod back to nature, Heat-Spring is made of pure indium, a sustainable element for which Indium Corporation provides a reclaim and recycle program. Depending on the application, however, Heat-Spring is also available in a variety of alloys, including InSn, InAg, and Sn+.
With sincere appreciation to the genetic evolution that has produced clingy-footed geckos, Indium Corporation researchers often look to the natural world for inspiration and creativity in the development of the next generation of materials science.
由 MarCom 专家 Christian Vischi 撰写。
